Rahul leads protests in House after Speaker does not allow discussion

New Delhi, Aug 6(PTI): Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, who had stormed the Well in the Lok Sabha demanding a debate on communal tension, charged the Narendra Modi government with not allowing discussion in Parliament where he said only one man's voice is heard.

“We are not being allowed to speak in Parliament. We are asking for discussion. There is a mentality in the government that discussion is not acceptable. Everybody feels it, their party feels it, we feel it, everybody feels it,” Rahul told reporters outside Parliament.

”There is a mood in Parliament that only one man's voice counts for anything in this country,” he said after Congress members stormed the Well of the House demanding a discussion on growing incidents of communal tension.

”We are raising a point, we are asking for discussion... The Speaker, I mean...It is completely one-sided, partiality. That's what we are raising,” Rahul said.

Reacting to a reporter's comment that he was raising his voice for the first time and leading from the front, Rahul said, “I have raised my voice many times in Parliament.”

Congress had earlier given notice of on adjournment motion in Lok Sabha over rising incidents of communal violence in the country.

Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, party MP M I Shahnawaz and party whip K C Venugopal had given the notice.

In the House, Rahul joined his party colleagues in slogan shouting in the Well against the government

Amid ruckus, the House was adjourned briefly during Question Hour.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the House during the din.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu, while opposing the adjournment motion, said there was no communal tension in the country and hit back at the opposition saying, ”Don't create unnecessary problems...”

While Congress members demanded that Question Hour should be suspended to take up the adjournment motion, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan did not allow it, leading to uproar.

Around 20 members, including Rahul, stood in the Well where members from Nationalist Congress Party, Janata Dal (United), Rashtriya Janata Dal, Revolutionary Socialist Party and the Aam Aadmi Party were also present. Before rushing into the Well, Rahul stood in the aisle.

The agitating members shouted 'we want justice' and said 'Pradhan Mantri jawab do (Prime Minister should reply)'.

Trinamul Congress members stood up and sought a discussion on communal tension in the country. \

When the House was reassembled after the brief adjournment, opposition members continued their protests and slogan shouting. They chanted 'acchey din kahan gaye, bhag gaye, bhag gaye' (Where are the good days, they have proved elusive) and 'we want justice, tana shahi nahi chalegi (we will not allow dictatorship)'.

As the Speaker continued to ignore the protests, at one point, Congress member Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury came to the podium and banged the desk of the Speaker saying she was discriminating against the opposition.

“You are custodian of the House. You are mother of the House. You are discriminating against us. We want decisive leadership. You are committing partiality,” he said, inviting strong reaction from the members of treasury benches.

However, Mahajan and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu tried to cool down the members of the ruling coalition by gesturing them to sit down.

“Dont worry, I can tackle everything,” she told the members of treasury benches.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who was present in the House during the protests, was seen encouraging party members to raise slogans.

She even gestured to Trinamul member Kalyan Banerjee to join the protests. Banerjee immediately came to her seat and had a brief chat but went to his seat again and did not join the protests.

After sometime, Sonia was seen sending Congress chief whip Jyotiraditya Scindia to talk to the Trinamul members. However, none of them joined the opposition protest.